So we were all up at 430 in the morning to get some coffee. By 515 we were getting geared up and starting to head to the tree stands.

I broke off from dad and Dan, and got to the stand no problem. By 545 I was sitting as comfortably as I could be in a tree stand and waiting for sunrise. By about 700 I was hearing gun shots all around me from a distance.

I heard things moving, which turned out to be just the squirrels and chipmunks. I did hear some grunting from behind the pine trees. From 1000 to 1340, basically nothing happened. It was torture sitting in the stand knowing that nothing was going on. I played around on my phone, snoozed while in the stand while getting my feet cold.

At about 1340, a doe and its fawn started walking up the trail towards me. Instantly froze thinking a buck would be right behind them. I kept watching while the doe and fawn made their way closer to me. Eventually the doe and fawn saw me and started walking slowly around me before finally running off.

At 1630 my father and I decided it was time to head in. My hunting gear held up, but my toes were the only thing that froze up.

Sad to say, no buck this time around.

We’re already planning what to do up at the farm in terms of blinds and other gear for next season and for bow season.